Cerity Partners LLC Purchases 7,984 Shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. $HCA

Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA) by 25.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,828 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 7,984 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in HCA Healthcare were worth $14,875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new position in HCA Healthcare during the first quarter valued at $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of HCA Healthcare during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in HCA Healthcare during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of HCA Healthcare in the second quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 311.8% during the 2nd quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 70 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HCA Healthcare news, EVP Michael R. Mcalevey sold 3,892 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.79, for a total value of $1,843,990.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 3,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,652,105.73. This trade represents a 52.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

HCA Healthcare Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE HCA opened at $488.44 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $462.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $411.98. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a 12-month low of $289.98 and a 12-month high of $520.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $111.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.36.

HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 24th. The company reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.64 by $1.32. HCA Healthcare had a negative return on equity of 792.25% and a net margin of 8.53%.The business had revenue of $19.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.55 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.90 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. HCA Healthcare has set its FY 2025 guidance at 27.000-28.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 24.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HCA Healthcare Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. HCA Healthcare’s payout ratio is currently 11.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on HCA shares. Morgan Stanley set a $425.00 price objective on HCA Healthcare in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of HCA Healthcare in a report on Monday, October 27th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $400.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of HCA Healthcare from $460.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on HCA Healthcare from $430.00 to $470.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $474.53.

HCA Healthcare Company Profile

HCA Healthcare, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates hospitals and related healthcare entities in the United States. It operates general and acute care hospitals that offers medical and surgical services, including inpatient care, intensive care, cardiac care, diagnostic, and emergency services; and outpatient services, such as outpatient surgery, laboratory, radiology, respiratory therapy, cardiology, and physical therapy.